


Nihil Novi Sub Luna

by Sarcastic_Gay_Dragon



Series: Veritas Omnia Vincit [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Albus Dumbledore Bashing, BAMF Ron Weasley, Creature Harry Potter, Dark Harry Potter, Elemental Magic, Gen, Good Slytherins, Hermione Granger Bashing, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Lily Evans Potter & Severus Snape Friendship, Lily Evans Potter Lives, Parent Voldemort (Harry Potter), Protective Slytherins, Remus Lupin & Lily Evans Potter Friendship, Ron Weasley is a Good Friend, Sane Voldemort (Harry Potter), Slytherin Harry Potter, Slytherin Ron Weasley, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, Werewolf Harry Potter, trigger warning for child abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-03
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:21:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21586777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarcastic_Gay_Dragon/pseuds/Sarcastic_Gay_Dragon
Relationships: Harry Potter/Fred Weasley/George Weasley, Lily Evans Potter/Tom Riddle | Voldemort, Lucius Malfoy/Narcissa Black Malfoy, Other Relationship Tags to Be Added, Regulus Black/Severus Snape, still not yet but they figure it out this book so yay
Series: Veritas Omnia Vincit [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1474238
Comments: 32
Kudos: 374





	1. Chapter 1

Kallias looked up from the window as the compartment door slid open. A redheaded boy with dirt on his nose looked at the three boys nervously.

"Sorry, all the other compartments were full. I can go find somewhere else to sit."

Kallias shook his head with a small smile. "Don't worry about it. Where are you going to sit, you just said everywhere else was full. Come on and sit down. Draco and Corvus won't mind, would you?”

Draco scowled, but Corvus elbowed him in the ribs and gestured to the seat across from him, next to Kallias. The boy sat down after storing his trunk on the rack.

"I'm Ron by the way, Ron Weasley."

Kallias glanced over at him. "Weasley? I don't suppose you're related to Fred and George Weasley, are you?"

Ron looked over at Kallias in surprise. "Yeah, they're my older brothers. You know, they said you were really nice when they met you last month. And you didn't make fun of my family last August when you saw them in Diagon Alley."

Ron blushed then, glancing over at Draco and Corvus. Kallias smiled at him and shrugged.

“I don’t know why people make fun of your family, and frankly I don’t care. I like or dislike people because of who they are, not their family or whatever.”

Ron smiled shakily at Kallias. It took a few minutes for Draco and Ron to get even slightly comfortable with each other, but once they did the compartment was filled with conversation and laughter.

About ten minutes later, the door opened again and Theo and Blaise stepped into the compartment.

“There you are! We’ve been looking for you guys. Wait, what’s a Weasley doing in here?”

Kallias gave Theo a look, and he shrugged and sat next to Draco, while Blaise sat across from him.

“Whatever. If this prick here can get along with him, I’m sure I can too.”

Draco shoved Theo, but grinned all the same as the two new boys were included in the conversation with ease.

* * *

A few minutes after the food trolley came by (in which Kallias bought multiples of everything for the entire compartment), the door slammed open and a bushy haired girl peered at all of them with her hands on her hips.

“Has anyone seen a toad? Neville here has lost his.”

She gestured behind her, where a frightened looking boy waved nervously.

Kallias shrugged and looked down at the floor of the compartment. Suddenly, he lunged towards Draco’s feet, grabbing hold of the toad under the bench. He stood and handed it to Neville with a smile.

“There you go. He must’ve snuck his way in here when we got things from the trolley. My name is Kallias, what’re yours?”

The girl replied before Neville could. “I’m Hermione Granger, and this is Neville Longbottom.”

Kallias wrinkled his nose at the girl. She was rather annoying, acting like she was in charge of everyone here. He turned to Neville with a small smile.

“Well Neville, would you like to come sit with us?”

Hermione gasped and pointed at Kallias’ face, who took a small step away from the finger. “Don’t sit with him Neville, he’s You-Know-Who’s son!”

Kallias scowled at Hermione.

“Yes, but if you know who I am, then you should know that I’m nothing like my father. And I asked Neville, not you, to sit with us. It’s his choice. So what do you say Neville, would you like to join us?”

Neville looked back and forth between the two, before he stepped past Hermione and into the compartment.

“Well, you did find Trevor, and you seem really nice. I’d like to sit with you, if it’s alright with everyone else.”

Neville cast a glance around the other boys in the compartment, who gave varied responses from shrugging to smiling and nodding. Neville sat between Ron and Blaise, who instantly introduced the boy to everyone and pulled him into the conversation.

“Well, it looks like that’s settled. Goodbye now.”

Kallias gave Hermione one last look, before he slid the compartment door shut and returned to his seat. He was content to gaze out the window and listen to the conversation until he heard Theo ask Neville what house he wanted to be in.

“Well, Gran wants me to be in Gryffindor like my mother and father.”

Kallias looked at Neville. “But what about you? What house do you want to be in?”

Neville bit his lip, looking very much like he had never been asked that question. Finally, he said, “I don’t think I’d do well in Gryffindor. I’ve always thought it’d be nice to be in Hufflepuff, but everyone says that’s a terrible choice.”

Kallias gave Neville an easy smile. “No it’s not. Each house is strong in it’s own way. Hufflepuff might be seen as the pushover house because everyone is nice, but people shouldn’t discredit them for that. Just like people shouldn’t assume Slytherin house produces only evil wizards, or Gryffindor house produces only heros. In fact, if my ancestor wasn’t Salazar Slytherin, I think I’d be in Hufflepuff. The Sorting Hat knows what the best fit for you is, just trust it.”

Neville looked at Kallias in wonder, then smiled and nodded. Kallias returned it.

“And just so you know, you’ll always have friends in us. I’m fairly certain most of us are going to Slytherin, but you can always spend time with us.”

Neville smiled again, and the conversation continued for the rest of the ride.

* * *

Kallias stood behind Blaise, waiting for his name to be called to be sorted. Because he was the descendant of one of the Founders of Hogwarts, he would be sorted last, although there was no doubt he would go in his ancestor’s house. He smiled as he watched Neville nervously sat under the Sorting Hat, before it shouted “Hufflepuff”.

He wasn’t surprised about any of his friends’ sorting, all Slytherin after Neville, until Ron ambled up to the Sorting Hat and put it on.

Kallias had figured, after spending the train ride getting to know Ron, he would join his brothers at the Gryffindor house, or maybe join Neville at Hufflepuff. Instead, the Hat sat silently on his head for a good few minutes, before it screamed to the hall, “SLYTHERIN!”

The Great Hall was silent as the first Slytherin Weasley made his way to his table, ears as red as his hair. Professor McGonagall called Blaise’s name, who joined the other boys at Slytherin table, then Kallias’ name.

Kallias walked up to the Hat confidently. It was, without a doubt, the fastest Sorting, as the Hat hadn’t even touched his head when it proclaimed him a Slytherin. After Kallias sat between Draco and Corvus, Dumbledore stood to make a speech, which Kallias promptly tuned out.

* * *

The Slytherin prefects, fifth years Gemma Farley and Lucas Avery, led the Slytherin first years down to the dungeons to a blank stone wall. As Kallias looked closer to the wall, he noticed faint engravings of snakes on an area of the stone, in the shape of an arching doorway.

Lucas cleared his throat and stated clearly, “Heir.”

The snakes on the stone began moving around, and the stone fell away to the Slytherin common room. As Kallias stepped in, he looked around in awe. It was well lit with many wall torches and fireplaces, as well as silver lanterns that hung high above, and decorated with green and silver furnishings. There was a balcony with stairs at either end of the common room, and Kallias could see rows of comfortable seating, tables, and bookshelves lining the walls. There was an entire wall of glass, showing the lake and the many magical creatures that lived within it. Two doorways were at the end of the room, with stone steps leading downwards, presumably to the dorms. The rest of the Slytherin house were already sitting around the common rooms, chatting quietly with their friends as the first years gathered around the prefects.

“Alright. Welcome to Slytherin house. Just a few rules, then you can be off to bed. First and foremost, while outside of the common room, the Slytherin house stands united. We only have each other, so if your worst enemy falls, pick them back up. You can go back to hating each other within the walls of the common room. Secondly, keep the common room neat. While the house elves do clean, they are not your servants, and Slytherin house will not add to their work. That leads me into the third rule, which is to keep your dorm room clean. You will be sharing a room with four or five other people, so keep it orderly. There will be monthly dormitory inspections, which will not be scheduled.”

As Gemma finished speaking, Lucas cleared his throat to bring the first years’ attention to him.

“The fourth rule is regarding house meetings. Most meetings are mandatory for a select group of students, such as first years or fifth years and above. The meetings for the entire house will be posted on the notice board at least one week ahead of time. All the house meetings will take place in the evening, when everyone is in the common room, so there is no excuse to miss a meeting if you’re required to attend. The fifth rule is curfews. Everyone must be in their common rooms by 8:00 at the latest, unless otherwise stated by a teacher or prefect. The curfews within the Slytherin common room are the times each year must be in bed. For first years, 9:00 at the latest. From there it goes later by 30 minutes for each year, with the seventh years having a curfew of midnight. There are silver lanterns in your dormitories that will extinguish at the time of your curfew, and if you aren’t in bed by curfew there could be repercussions.”

“The final rule is about house-wide studying. House-wide study sessions are every weekday from 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm in the common area. Provided all your homework is completed and checked by somebody a year above you or Professor Snape, you do not have to participate in studying. If you wish to stay in the common area, please remain quiet while others are working. If you are struggling with your work, do not be afraid to ask Professor Snape or a student in another year. And, this isn’t an official rule, but never travel alone. The other houses don’t like us, so take care to never leave yourself vulnerable by being alone in the halls.”

“Now that that’s taken care of, the two doors at the other end of the common room lead to the dormitory. Your dormitories will be the very first door on the left. The boys are to the left, and the girls are to the right. Your luggage has already been put in your dormitories, so go ahead and get unpacked and settled in.”

Kallias followed Draco and Corvus to the doorway on the left, then down the steps to the hallway that lead to the other boys dormitories. He opened the first door and entered. The room was washed in warm light from both the silver lanterns and the fireplace at the end of the dorm. Eight beds lined two of the walls, with spaces for trunks at the end of each bed, a wardrobe, a small bedside table, and a small shelf. The third wall was another glass wall that looked into the lake. The fireplace was on the fourth wall, across from the glass wall and next to the door, with a small couch and two seats. The floor, unlike the stone out in the common room, was a deep brown hardwood. Near the fireplace was a door that led to a bathroom.

Kallias moved to the bed directly against the glass wall with his trunk at the end of it. He sat on his trunk, just watching the creatures swimming in the lake for a moment. He smiled lightly as a merchild waved at him. He changed into his pajamas and brushed his teeth, listening to the easy banter of the other five boys as they also got ready for bed. As he climbed under the soft green covers, the only faint light coming from the fireplace, he couldn’t help but feel content. This was his home away from home for the next seven years, and he was more than happy to say it actually felt like a home already.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m baaaaaack!!! Sorry it’s been awhile, but I’ve only just now gotten the inspiration and motivation to write new chapters

Kallias sighed as he slid into his seat at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall. He wasn’t all that hungry, as the full moon was in two days, but he knew he had to eat something or else Draco, the mother hen that he was, would throw a fit. A few minutes later, Severus came around handing out slips of parchment to everybody. When Kallias got it, he realized it was a timetable.

He read it and huffed. “Potions, flying, _and_ Elemental magic with the Gryffindors. Thankfully it’s not all in one day.”

“Yeah, but what exactly is the Elemental magic class? How do you teach a class on something that’s genetic?”

Before anyone could speculate in response to Ron, the chatter in the Great Hall died. Kallias looked towards the Head Table and saw Dumbledore standing, smiling pleasantly as he waited for the students to look over at him.

“As you can see, there is a new class on your timetables this year. We are indeed teaching Elemental magic this year. Our teacher is Professor Walker.”

Dumbledore gestured down the table, and a young woman stood up and tilted her head slightly. “That is all, thank you. Please continue to enjoy your breakfast and fill your beliles, so your minds may be filled later today!”

Dumbledore sat down and the various conversations resumed as everyone returned to their plates. Kallias rolled his eyes and went back to eating small bites of the food on his plate, content to listen to his friends’ conversation.

A girl stood from her seat a few places down from Kallias and moved to sit in the empty spot next to him. She held out her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, My Prince. My name is Pansy Parkinson”

Kallias shook her hand, his head dipping into a small bow, before letting his drop. “The pleasure is all mine, Heir Parkinson. But please call me Kallias. I prefer my title to be used in formal settings only.”

“Is this not a formal setting, My Prince?”

Kallias smiled lightly as he pushed some fruit around his plate. “As this is meant to be my home away from home for the next seven years, I should hope it’s informal.”

Pansy smiled slightly, “Truer words have never been spoken, My Prince. But as this is our first time meeting and being properly introduced, I will consider it formal. Just this once.”

“A good point. Just this once then, and as we have been properly introduced, I will consider the formal moment over.”

Pansy nodded. “Very well. Call me Pansy then, Kallias.” She offered one last brief smile, before she returned to her original seat, leaning close to another first year girl to whisper.

Ron shook his head. “That was weird.”

Kallias shot him a look. “Why was it weird, Weasley?”

If Ron was taken aback by the less than friendly tone, he didn’t show it. “It was just so...formal. And why’d she call you ‘My Prince’? I thought your title was Heir.”

Kallias smiled ruefully. “That is something that should not be discussed on the first day of school in the Great Hall. We’ll talk about it later.”

Ron raised an eyebrow. “Later like later today or later like later this year?”

Kallias chuckled quietly. “We’ll make a compromise and say later this term, Weasley.”

“Alright. And for Merlin’s sake, call me Ron. Why’s everyone only using last names?”

At a pointed look from Draco, Kallias ate a glazed strawberry before he answered. “It’s a Slytherin thing. First names are a privilege given to those who have earned it. Many of us are friends from childhood, so that privilege is already given. It’s a show of respect that you use a person’s last name until they let you use their first name.”

Ron groaned. “Oh Merlin, should I have been calling you Slytherin this whole time?”

The other boy shook his head. “No. By the time we walked into the castle, I thought of you as a friend, so I don’t mind you calling me by my first name. I didn’t know if you considered me a friend, so I haven’t called you Ron.”

“Well you are my friend. Wait, if your first name is a privilege, why’d you tell Pan- oh sorry I mean Parkinson, to call you Kallias so quickly?”

Bright green eyes found their way to Pansy Parkinson. “I just have a feeling she’s going to be a good friend.”

* * *

The first day of classes passed rather uneventfully, until flying class. It was the only class the Slytherins shared with the Gryffindors today, and Kallias cited that as the reason the class was so...exciting.

Before the teacher, Madam Hooch, made her way over to the students, everyone stood around talking excitedly about what to expect. While the Slytherins chatted amongst themselves quietly, the Gryffindors shouted and laughed quite loudly.

A commotion drew Kallias’ attention away from his conversation with Draco, Corvus, Ron, Theo, and Blaise and he made his way over to where a Slytherin girl was being harassed by a group of Gryffindor boys. One, a very loud Irish, was holding something in his hand and laughing as the Slytherin tried to grab it from him.

“Give it back!”

“Why don’t ya just take it, lass? It’s right here.”

He held the object, a book, above the girl’s head and waited for her to jump, trying to grab it, to pull it away. Kallias could feel a growl bubbling in his throat, trying to force its way out into the open. He tamped down the urge to snarl and snap at the boy as he walked over, flanked by Draco and Corvus.

“What’s going on over here?”

He had addressed the Slytherin, who was now sniffling as she tried hard not to cry. However, the Irish boy laughed at the girl, then answered. “Aw, we’re just havin’ a wee bit of fun. What’s it to ya?”

Kallias surveyed the situation. He realized the Slytherin girl was the same one Pansy had been talking to during breakfast. They must’ve been good friends, because Pansy looked absolutely murderous as she struggled to break free from the hold that the other Slytherin girls had on her.

“A bit of fun at the expense of my housemate. If you’d kindly give the book back, we can all go our separate ways without any trouble. It seems as though Pansy over here is almost free, and boy does she look mad.”

The Slytherin girl sniffled again, a few tears falling as she tried to swipe the book from the boy’s grasp. His expression went from apprehensive to mocking as she began to cry, and he turned to his Gryffindor friends to make fun of her.

“Aw, look! The little lass is sad! What could be so important about this wee book? Let’s just have a look see then, shall we?”

He opened the book and began reading aloud. “Dear Diary, tonight I was sorted into Slytherin! I’m really happy that me and Pans will be in the same house. Maybe-”

And that’s when it all went to hell. Pansy broke free from her friends, hands scrabbling to grab the back of her robes as she charged. She almost tackled the boy, but changed course when the other Slytherin girl called out to her. As she pulled the girl closer to herself, she glared hatefully at the Gryffindor boy and then slid her eyes over to Kallias and his friends.

Draco and Corvus had charged the boy and were caught up in keeping the Irish boy’s two lackeys from causing even more trouble. Kallias himself snarled and lunged for the book, ripping it from the boy’s hands. The boy tripped over his own feet as Kallias lunged and fell to the ground. Quickly, he scrambled back, staring fearfully at Kallias.

The werewolf forced himself to take a deep breath and calm himself, before he picked up the girl’s diary and closed it, careful not to catch even a glimpse of the writing within. He held it out to the pair of girls, and Pansy took it with unspoken thanks shining in her eyes. As Kallias turned back to the Gryffindors, he heard Pansy speaking soothingly to the girl.

“Here you go. It’s alright now, Daph, it’s okay.”

Kallias peered at the boy, who was hauled onto his feet by his two friends, they swept his gaze over the rest of the Gryffindors. “I wouldn’t make it a habit of targeting the Slytherins. We’re a vengeful bunch.”

And then he turned away and beckoned towards his cousins, walking back towards his friends and continuing their previous conversation as if nothing happened.

* * *

Kallias dropped into a seat at the Slytherin table across from Pansy and her friend. They had just had Charms with the Hufflepuffs, which was significantly less thrilling than flying class.

Draco, sitting next to him, pointedly spooned some food onto his plate and pushed his fork towards him. “You’ve got to eat, ‘Lias. Your Mum will kill us if Severus tells her you aren’t eating.”

Kallias gave him a look. “Severus knows why I’m not, and so does Mum. She’ll understand. Leave it alone, Draco.”

Draco sighed but dropped the subject, turning to his own plate of food. Pansy watched the interaction with amusement. “Thank you, Kallias, for flying class.”

Kallias smiled slightly and shrugged. “He deserved it.”

Pansy’s friend, who was looking exceptionally happier, laughed a little and shook her head. “He did, but you saw the other Slytherins. They weren’t really doing anything. In Slytherin, it’s basically expected that you can stand up for yourself, especially to the likes of Gryffindor.”

Kallias smiled at her again. “Well I don’t like bullies. I was happy to stand up to him, Madam….”

The girl smiled and held her hand out. “Daphne Greengrass, My Prince. Pansy’s my Soulmate.”

Kallias shook her hand, noting the small red heart on the heel of her palm. His eyes glanced over to Pansy with a tiny smile. “Kallias. So you’ve got all the dirt on Pansy, eh?”

“Of course. We’ll have to get together and trade stories. Draco was quite the wild child, I’ve heard.” Daphne laughed and looked at Pansy, who rolled her eyes fondly as Draco made an offended noise.

“Oh hush and eat your food, blondie. You need to eat too, Kallias. I noticed you didn’t eat much at breakfast.”

Kallias groaned as Pansy looked at him. “Oh great, two mother hens.”

As his friends laughed, Kallias smiled and begrudgingly picked up his fork to eat a few bites of his food.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made some changes about werewolves in the series. Basically, look like actual wolves, like on all fours and stuff. And they don’t lose their human sense if they run in a pack of some sort. So because Kallias is on his own, he’s more animal than human
> 
> TW- self-harm (not graphic detail)

Their second Potions class of the year was Double Potions two days later. It was their first class of the morning, which only served to agitate Kallias further. While his body was accustomed to rising with the sun, he still wasn’t much of a morning person, especially on the morning of the full moon.

Walking into the classroom was a vicious assault on his enhanced senses, and there weren’t even any potions brewing yet. The Gryffindors were loud as ever on the other side of the room, and Kallias had to resist either covering his ears or growling at the bunch of raucous lions.

When Severus swept into the room, glowering, Kallias almost groaned in relief as the Gryffindors fell silent. The feeling passed as his godfather put the instructions for today’s potion on the board and Draco went to go get their ingredients. The ingredients attacked his poor nose and made the pounding in his head worsen.

“Kallias, are you alright? You're looking a bit ill.” Daphne, who had turned around in her seat, asked worriedly. Seamus Finnegan heard her from the Gryffindor side of the classroom.

“Oh no! Does the baby Dark Lord have a wee cold? Why are you so worried there, Greenie? Is he your soulmate?” His voice was mocking and filled with laughter.

Without turning around, Kallias knew Pansy was quietly seething at the ingredients cabinet. He himself was close to snapping already, as the Irish boy’s laughter seemed to rub his nerves raw. Luckily, Severus quickly put that to a stop.

“Ten points from Gryffindor, Finnegan. Nowhere in the instructions does it say talking is necessary for the potion’s successful brewing.”

Seamus sputtered, but returned his attention to his cauldron with quiet grumblings. Then, even those ceased as Severus shot him a nasty glare. Kallias glanced up and caught his eye, sending him a small nod in thanks.

Draco did most of the work in the cauldron, as the dry ingredients, though very smelly, didn’t aggravate Kallias nearly as much as standing over a cauldron full of Cure for Boils. Severus allowed the divided work, as he knew of Kallias’ werewolf senses, but snapped when any other pair tried to do the same thing. Hermione Granger, who was working with a clumsy pureblooded boy, protested when Severus snapped at them.

“But Professor, Slytherin and Draco are doing the same thing!”

Severus whirled around, stalking towards the bushy-haired Muggleborn. “And that, Miss Granger, is not your problem, nor is it your business. Now I suggest you keep Master Bones from making a mess of your potion.”

At this remark, Hermione jumped and turned to keep Johnathan Bones from adding the wrong ingredient into their potion. Once she was sure their potion was safe, she turned back to the table Kallias and Draco were working at and studied the Slytherin Heir closely, watching with narrowed eyes as he chopped an ingredient to pass to Draco before rubbing his nose.

* * *

That night, after dinner, Kallias split from his friends and headed off towards the Hospital Wing, looking around to make sure he wasn’t followed. Hermione Granger had been a pain in his wolfy tail all day, every class they shared had him being watched by the bossy girl closely. Thankfully, she was held up in the Great Hall by Johnny Bones and Lucas Shacklebolt, the only two people that didn’t seem to push Granger away.

As he hurried to the Hospital Wing, Kallias was immensely grateful for the deserted hallways, providing him with blissful silence as his day-long headache banged against his skull. Entering the Hospital Wing, Madam Pomfrey gestured towards the beds, and he dropped his bag on the floor next to one, sinking onto the softness with a grunt.

Pomfrey cast a diagnostic spell to make sure he was healthy, then helped him stand. The moon was almost completely hidden by clouds, but the wolf inside Kallias still leapt and pushed against his skin, trying to answer the moon’s call. It was getting more difficult to stand, and the young werewolf was quick to lean on the mediwitch, suppressing a growl as his head drooped.

In their haste to make it out on the grounds, neither one noticed the watchful brown eyes peering at them from around the corner.

* * *

Kallias, breathing heavily, waved Pomfrey away. “Leave, please. The moon’s almost out.”

Pomfrey cast one more monitoring charm on the old shack, then gave the boy a stern but caring look and hurried back out the tunnel and to the Hospital Wing. She would watch the monitoring charms as much as she could, just as she had done for little Remus Lupin in his younger years.

Back at the Shrieking Shack, Kallias gazed out of the windows, watching the clouds move away from the moon with apprehension. No matter how many times he transformed, it would still be painful. He wasn’t yet old enough for the Wolfsbane Potion, that would have to wait until next year. As the moon finally peeked out from behind the clouds, Kallias’ blazing green eyes turned yellow as the transformation started.

In Madam Pomfrey’s office in the Hospital Wing, the witch watched in something akin to horror as the young boy’s bones cracked and shifted under his skin until a black wolf cub was standing in his place, about the size of a grown Retriever. The wolf looked around for a few seconds, before it launched itself, himself (Pomfrey forced herself to remember that under all the fur and claws was a scared little boy) at a squirrel that had found its way into the shack.

Thankfully, the wolf didn’t eat the squirrel, but simply left its corpse in the corner of the living room before he howled and went into a frenzy as the moon’s effect on his mind seemingly sunk in. It was a flurry of fur and claws as the wolf slashed and tore at every bit of furniture in the shack, running up and down the stairs in anger.

Madam Pomfrey watched then, with a small gasp, as the wolf began to claw himself. She shook her head, as if trying to will the poor babe to stop his attack. Her mind flashed back to an eleven year old Remus Lupin, who had been scarred even before he arrived at school and done the same thing in the Shrieking Shack every month for five years, until those three boys of his became Animagi to help him.

Even though what they had done was illegal, and Pomfrey knew it happened via the same monitoring charms she used now, she hadn’t reported it. For all the trouble the Marauders caused, they risked a seven year sentence in Azkaban for failing to register themselves as Animagi. Even now, watching not Remus Lupin but Kallias Slytherin, she could only hope that this boy’s friends were willing to do the same, or _anything_ to keep him from doing this to himself every full moon.

Pomfrey was saved the continued heartbreak in the wee hours of the morning, when the wolf cub finally wore himself out and curled up in the middle of the living room of the Shrieking Shack, blood dripping from his self inflicted wounds.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW- mentions of abuse and self-harm (not graphic)

Madam Pomfrey, as soon as the moon fell and the sky turned light as the sun began to rise, hurried out of the castle to retrieve the young Slytherin from the Shrieking Shack. She had fallen asleep not long after the werewolf had, and was awakened by the monitoring charms alerting her to the boy’s return from wolf to human.

The boy was sitting cross legged on the floor, thankfully wearing trousers, looking around at the room’s torn up appearance. When Pomfrey was out of the tunnel, he looked up, green eyes shining. Pomfrey clucked sadly at the dried blood on his neck and chest. Looking around, she saw that his shirt was on the floor in tatters, soaked with blood.

She summoned a blanket and wrapped it around his shoulders, then helped him stand. As Pomfrey put the blanket on his shoulders, she saw a few `scars that looked years old, and silently wondered about them as the pair ambled down the tunnel and back to the castle. They were silent until they reached the Hospital Wing.

“Sit on a bed please, dear. I’m going to take a look at your injuries, then you can put some sleep clothes on and get some rest.”

Kallias nodded and let the blanket drop on the bed so his torso was visible. Pomfrey cast a cleaning spell to rid his skin of dried blood, then cast a diagnostic charm to get a better look at the claw marks marring the poor boy’s skin.

“Well dearie, I’m afraid I won’t be able to heal it completely. As you are a Magical being, your claws will leave a scar, but they aren’t infected thank Merlin. Why Dumbledore makes you stay in that old dusty Shack..”

She trailed off, muttering under her breath as she set about bandaging Kallias’ numerous claw marks. Kallias just let her do as she pleased, staring at the wall opposite him. When she was finished she stepped back and conjured a curtain around his bed to let him change into pajamas.

“Madam Pomfrey, can I have something to eat?”

His voice was quiet and strained, and Madam Pomfrey couldn’t deny the poor boy if she wanted to.

“Of course dear, I’ll call for an elf to bring you something in just a moment, alright?”

Kallias just nodded and tilted his head, distinctly dog-like, towards the doors of the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey’s eyes darted towards the doors just as they opened, and the woman sighed as one of the Weasley twins, she didn’t know which, walked in holding a cloth to his eye.

“Mr. Weasley, it is barely dawn, what in Merlin’s name happened?”

The second year glanced at Kallias as he was ushered into a bed, and Madam Pomfrey closed the curtains around the young werewolf’s bed with her wand.

“Mr. Weasley.”

The boy looked back at her and grinned. “Sorry, Madam Pomfrey. Georgie and I were trying to get a prank set up for breakfast today, and it kinda backfired.”

So she was dealing with Fred, then. “And pray tell, where is your brother?”

Fred jerked his thumb towards the doors, where his twin ambled through, uninjured.

“I see. Would you two like to clue me in as to what caused this?”

The boys exchanged grins and shook their heads. Madam Pomfrey rolled her eyes fondly as she moved Fred’s hand away from his eye and inspected the damage to his eye. She watched out of the corner of her eye as George slowly inched towards the curtain, attempting to peek behind it. With another roll of her eyes, she flicked her wand to secure the curtain around the bed. George started, jumping back with wide eyes.

“Curiosity killed the cat, Mr. Weasley.”

George grinned and sat next to his brother on the bed, slinging his arm around his neck. “But satisfaction brought it back, didn’t it?”

Madam Pomfrey threw him a look as she healed Fred’s eye and ran spells to evaluate his vision.

“I have to go get a potion for you, Mr. Weasley. Stay on the bed, both of you, and don’t bother my other patient.”

They gave her twin salutes, which had Pomfrey rolling her eyes again as she headed into her stores of potions, searching for the right one. Out in the main area, the twins had a silent conversation with each other before they looked over at the curtain.

“Oi, are you awake?”

A stretch of silence, then a familiar voice called out quietly. “Yes. What prank were you setting up?”

“We were down in the kitchens, coating the inside of the goblets with a potion that would change everybody’s hair different colors.”

A short laugh rang out in the empty room. “That would have been interesting to see.”

“Oh we got it done, but when we tried to do it to the teachers’ goblets, it backfired.”

“Guess the teachers’ goblets and plates are warded against things like that. Hit Freddie in the eye.”

“And just what are you doing here this early, oh great Lord Slytherin?”

“Stayed overnight.”

Kallias’ voice had become somewhat tight, so the Weasley twins figured it was a sore subject.

“Are you alright?”

The boy laughed again, though it didn’t sound nearly as humorous as he first laugh. “Are you worried?”

Neither boy could answer, because Madam Pomfrey was bustling back into the room with a potion for Fred. “I told you not to bother him.”

Fred grinned at her as he took the vial from the mediwitch. “But we didn’t bother him-”

“Did we, Kallias?”

Kallias, behind the curtain, smiled briefly. “Nope.”

Madam Pomfrey glanced suspiciously between the identical boys, before she sighed and nudged Fred’s hand. Dutifully, he tipped his head back and swallowed the potion with a grimace.

“Terrible taste, really, but it worked. Thanks, Madam Pomfrey.”

The boys ambled out of the Hospital Wing, whispering quietly to each other about the young Slytherin.

* * *

Hours later, after he had eaten and taken a nap, Kallias asked Madam Pomfrey if he could use her Floo to talk to Remus. He didn’t remember much about the previous night, but what he did remember was worrying, and he wanted to talk to his fellow werewolf about it.

When he told Madam Pomfrey this, she gave him a somewhat somber smile and nodded him towards her office, telling him where the Floo powder was. Now he sat on the stone floor in front of the fireplace with a handful of the green powder. He threw it in and called out, “Slytherin Castle”.

His mother’s head poked through the flames. “My Beauty, are you okay?”

Kallias smiled at her. “Hi, Mum. I’m alright, I just need to talk to Remus.”

She frowned, not quite believing him. “Remus is sleeping, darling, just as you should be.”

“Please, Mum, it’s really important.”

Lily sighed and nodded. Her head disappeared and Kallias distantly heard her calling for the older werewolf, before Remus’ soft, tired green eyes were peering up at him.

“Kallias? Your mother said it was important.”

Kallias looked down at the floor, suddenly feeling shy. “I uh...well..”

“Kallias? What’s wrong, Pup?”

Instead of saying anything, Kallias yanked the sleeve of his sleep shirt up and revealed his bandaged forearm. Remus’ face showed his immediate understanding.

“Oh Pup..”

Kallias looked back up with tears in his eyes. “Remus I heard him. In my head.”

“Greyback?”

“Yeah. It was like he was calling me. I think that’s part of the reason why I did this to myself. It was like I was trying to get him out, and I couldn’t, so I just kept clawing, trying to get him out.”

He was getting worked up, and Remus’ calm voice grounded him.

“Breathe, Pup. It’s alright. Greyback will try to call you, as your Alpha, but just the fact that you didn’t try to come to him means you are stronger than you think.”

Kallias bit his lip. “But I don’t want to keep tearing myself up every month because he’s calling out to me. What am I supposed to do, Remy?”

The nickname slipped out, and Kallias noticed a brief flash of pain on the man’s face before he morphed his features into a gentle smile.

“I’d ask your Uncle Severus if he could start teaching you some Occlumency. If you can get some strong mental shields, eventually you’ll be able to keep the shields up even during the moon. Having Occlumency will also help you when it comes to keeping Dumbledore out of your mind, if you become skilled enough.”

Kallias nodded. “Alright. Thanks, Moony. I’ll let you get some sleep.”

The older werewolf smiled again. “See that you do too, Pup.”

“Oh don’t worry, I’ve been kept to the bed for the whole morning. I just barely convinced Madam Pomfrey to let me use the Floo.”

Remus laughed and bid goodbye, and the flames returned to their normal orange. Kallias rubbed his face with his hands, then stood off the floor and exited the office. Madam Pomfrey ushered him back into his bed and sent him a small smile before she went into her office.

Kallias sighed and got comfortable in the bed, then stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought.

* * *

Kallias wasn’t let out of the Hospital Wing until dinnertime the next day. He headed for the Great Hall and sat between Draco and Blaise at the Slytherin table. He felt eyes on his back, and when he turned around he saw Granger’s bushy hair flying as she whipped her head back around.

Kallias rolled his eyes and turned back to the table, where Draco had filled his plate with food. Or maybe it was Pansy, because Draco was locked in a conversation with Theo and Pansy was looking at him expectantly.

“Eat your food, Kallias.”

Kallias grinned and picked up his fork to spear a piece of meat. “Thanks, Pansy.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Across the Great Hall, Hermione Granger watched Kallias with narrowed eyes. He hadn’t been in class all day, nor had he been at breakfast or lunch. She had tried to ask Fred and George Weasley about it, because she knew they had gone to the Hospital Wing early yesterday morning, but they shut her questioning down before it had really even started.

Turning her head to look down the table at the twins, where they were laughing with another second year, Hermione hummed thoughtfully. Why had the twins refused to answer any questions about the Slytherin Heir? Part of her wondered if it was because they hadn’t seen or spoken to the boy, but another part somehow knew that wasn’t the case.

Johnny Bones and Lucas Shacklebolt, the only students that wouldn’t ignore her, glanced at her.

“Hermione, what’s going on in that head of yours?” Lucas nudged her.

“You two are friends with the Weasley’s, right?”

They both nodded, looking somewhat confused. Hermione continued on anyways.

“I tried asking the twins about Kallias Slytherin, but they wouldn’t answer anything. Why would they refuse to talk about someone they barely know?”

Johnny frowned. “Well Kallias is really nice. A couple years ago his cousins, Draco and Corvus, said something really mean about their family, but Kallias apologized to them. That might be why, if the questions you were asking implied that Kallias wasn’t nice.”

Lucas stuffed a bite of food in his mouth and swallowed with a small laugh. “Or they could be his Soulmates.”

Johnny snorted and elbowed Lucas in the side. Hermione frowned. “What do you mean?”

They exchanged looks. “I forgot Muggles don’t have Soulmarks.”

Now Hermione was getting frustrated. She prided herself on being the smartest she could possibly be, but it was obvious that she was lacking some pretty important information.

“What’s a Soulmark?”

“It’s a type of identification to help you find your Soulmate, or mates if you have more than one.”

Hermione raised an eyebrow, waiting for one of the two boys to continue.

“There are different types of marks, but Soulmates will always have the same type. Like, my Soulmate will have this little blue star, just like I do. Every Magical person who has a Soulmate will have a Mark that can lead them to their Soulmate, but Muggles and Muggleborns don’t.” Lucas explained. “You might have a Soulmate, you’ll just have a harder time finding them because you will only be able to rely on your Magic, rather than a Mark.”

“Rely on my Magic?”

Johnny nodded. “Yeah. When Soulmates interact romantically for the first time, their Magic will tell them. My parents told me it was like their Magic singing, calling to each other. You’ll only know when you meet your Soulmate when your Magic calls to theirs.”

Hermione nodded. “Okay. So what was that joke about Fred and George being Kallias’ Soulmates? Are you saying it’s possible to have more than one?”

“Yeah. It’s pretty common to have platonic Soulmates as well as romantic Soulmates. Some people have only platonic, and some people have more than one romantic Soulmate. I was just joking that Fred and George could be Kallias’ Soulmate, and their Magic realizes it when they don’t.”

Hermione wrinkled her nose. “But Fred and George are brothers! That’s disgusting!”

Lucas frowned at her. “Most twins in the Magical world share everything, and the Weasley twins are no exception. Magical twins, especially identical, have the same Magical core. They’re more powerful together, so they do everything together. If you don’t like it, you don’t have to indulge in it, but you’d do well to keep quiet about it. You have to remember, Hermione, that societal norms and standards are different in the Magical world than in the Muggle world. You ought to keep that in mind.”

Hermione’s forehead wrinkled as she turned back to her dinner. This new information was something to think over.

* * *

As Kallias, Corvus, and Draco walked to the Slytherin common room after dinner, Corvus murmured in his cousin’s ear.

“Weasley has been asking after you.”

Kallias glanced over towards where Ron was walking with Blaise and Theo, then back at Draco. “Why didn’t he say anything at dinner?”

Draco raised his nose in the air and sniffed. “We’ve been teaching him discretion. It seems he’s getting the hang of it quite nicely. Just be aware that he will most likely start asking questions once we get to our dormitory.”

Kallias frowned. “Do you think I can trust him?”

“Maybe. He seems like a good person, but I suppose we won’t know until you tell him.”

Kallias rolled his eyes. “Thanks, that helps so much.”

Corvus grinned. “You’re welcome.”  
  
Indeed, the second the dormitory door shut, Ron turned to Kallias and asked, “Are you okay? You were in the Hospital Wing for two days.”

Kallias rubbed his side, which had a mostly healed scar on it, and sat on the end of his bed. “Ron, do you know anything about laws against creature-blooded?”

Ron frowned and opened his mouth to say something, then closed it. He glanced around the room at the other boys, who were moving about but probably listening. He took a breath and looked at Kallias.

“Kallias,” he gulped and whispered quietly. “Kallias, are you creature-blooded?”

Kallias swallowed roughly and nodded, avoiding the redhead’s gaze. Said redhead moved to sit next to him and carefully laid a hand on his shoulder. “Well, I don’t know much about the laws against creature-blooded, but I know they’re rubbish. None of those people asked to be creature-blooded, and it’s dumb to punish them because they are.”

Kallias glanced up at the taller boy and smiled slightly. A quick glance around the room told him that Blaise and Theo had definitely heard, because they were both outright staring at him, but they didn't seem to care. Their other two dormmates, two hulking boys named Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, didn’t show any indication that they had heard the conversation.

In fact, Theo looked excited as he asked, “Are you a werewolf?”

Kallias rolled his eyes as Draco smacked his Soulmate’s arm. “Yeah. I went to the Hospital Wing for the full moon. The Whomping Willow guards a passageway into the Shrieking Shack, and that’s where I spent the night. I had to stay the extra two days because something happened to me, but I’m fine for now.”

Corvus frowned at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Kallias ran a hand through his hair, ruffling it, and sighed. “I felt Greyback trying to call me to him. It sent me into a frenzy and I...” Kallias shuddered and shrugged off his robe. He lifted his shirt up enough to show the angry red mark that took up most of his left side. “I tore myself up pretty bad. Madam Pomfrey says they’ll heal faster because of my increased healing factor, but my claws are considered magical so they’ll scar.”

He gave a bitter laugh as he dropped his shirt. “I went from having scars from abuse to having scars from self-harm.”

Draco came forward and pulled him into a hug. “It’ll be alright, ‘Lis. Did you tell Aunt Lily or Remus?”

Kallias nodded into his shoulder and pulled back enough so his voice wasn’t muffled. “Remus said it would be a good idea to ask Severus about learning Occlumency. It’ll take some time, but if I get strong enough mental shields, they’ll eventually stay up during the full moon. Learning Occlumency will also help to keep Dumbledore out, once I get strong enough. If Severus is willing, I’m going to strongly suggest all of you take up Occlumency lessons with him, as I have a feeling all of you will be subject to Dumbledore’s prodding at some point. For now, just avoid looking him in the eyes.”

“But do it subtly, Weasley. We don’t want him figuring out that we’re purposefully avoiding his eyes. Look at his nose, or around his eyes, just not directly.”

Ron nodded at Draco, then rolled his eyes. “Quit calling me Weasley, my name is Ron.”

Draco eyed him, before sighing. “Very well, you may call me Draco then.”

Ron grinned, but it slipped off his face when he turned to Kallias. “Wait a second. Does that mean the Shrieking Shack isn’t actually haunted?”

Kallias laughed. “Only by a werewolf. My Uncle Remus is also a werewolf, he went to school with my mother. The Shrieking Shack is where he spent his full moons. They let the rumors of the haunting keep people from going inside the Shack.”

* * *

Up in Gryffindor Tower, Hermione was sitting next to the fireplace in the common room. After dinner, she had hurriedly raced to the library before curfew in order to check out a few books on Soulmates. One was open on her lap, though she hadn’t been reading it for a few minutes, her mind occupied on the Heir of Salazar Slytherin.

The common room was filled with noise, but she didn’t pay any attention to it, until she heard the Weasley twins and their friends laughing uproariously. She turned to Lucas and Johnny.

“What else can you tell me about the Weasley’s?”

Lucas looked up from his own book and sighed. “Why?”

Hermione shrugged, looking as innocent as she could. “I’m just curious, is all.”

Lucas narrowed his eyes at her, but closed his book and glanced over towards the redheads. “They were part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, the last 28 ‘pure’ families, but they’re considered blood traitors because they spoke out against the list, they told everyone that they definitely had Muggle blood in their family and they were proud of it. Most every pureblood family is elitist, so they’re basically shunned. There are rumors that they’ve got creature-blooded in their family, so that doesn’t help their case with the other pureblood families.”

“The oldest, Bill, is a curse breaker at Gringotts, works in Egypt I think. Charlie graduated just last year, heard he went to Romania to work with dragons. Percy, over there, he’s the Gryffindor prefect and is pretty uptight, basically completely opposite of Fred and George. This is their second year and they’ve already gained the reputation of the pranksters. The youngest son is Ron, he’s in Slytherin, and next year little Ginny will be coming to Hogwarts. She’s the only female Weasley in generations.”

Hermione nodded, and the two boys considered the conversation over as they went back to whatever they had been doing as Hermione processed their words. Suddenly, her eyes widened and she whispered towards Lucas.

“Do werewolves exist?”

Lucas, bewildered, nodded. “Yeah. Most of those fairytale creatures Muggles have are real. Why?”

Hermione sucked in a breath. Kallias Slytherin had gone to the Hospital Wing on the full moon, and hadn’t returned for two days. He had been snappish and easy to anger, and he hadn’t eaten very much before or after. He was a werewolf.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it’s been a minute, folks!

Kallias tried to get Severus alone for a week in order to ask him about learning Occlumency, not only for himself but for his friends as well. After every Potions class, Granger always stayed back, staring at him until he was forced to leave to make it to his next class. Trying to get him alone when every Slytherin was in the common room was nearly impossible. Severus was very devoted to his students and their lives and studies. He swept around the common room each night, answering questions, checking homework, and generally being a solid presence in his snakes’ lives. He wasn’t comforting, and nobody tried to say he was, but he was solid. He answered questions bluntly and honestly, having no time or patience for blubbering or hand holding through the problem.

Finally, after one Potions class in which Johnny Bones and Lucas Shacklebolt pulled Hermione from the room impatiently, Kallias walked up to Severus’ desk and tapped on it with his knuckles to gather the man’s attention.

“Yes, Kallias?”

Kallias glanced towards the open door and murmured quietly. “It’s about last week.”

Correctly interpreting the information, Severus flicked his wand at the door and closed with a soft click.

“I presume you know what happened to me? Good. Well, I spoke with Remus about it and he suggested Occlumency lessons with you. He said once I get strong enough it will not only help with the moon but also with Dumbledore. If you are willing, I would like for my friends to have the same protections against the old man.”

Severus nodded. “Of course. The wolf is correct, Occlumency will protect your mind from prying eyes and your Alpha’s call. If your friends are all up for the challenge and the extra work, I will teach them as well. We will say it is extra tutoring.”

Kallias nodded in agreement. “Thank you, Uncle Severus.”

The man’s lips twitched upwards as he nodded towards the door. “We will start in two nights, after dinner. Now run along, I don’t want you to be late to your next class.”

Kallias grinned and headed towards the door, running through the halls to make it to Elemental class before it started.

He made it just in time, sitting next to Draco and Corvus just before Professor Walker entered. They had been learning the theory and origins behind Elemental magic for the past week, and everyone was excited for this class because it seemed they would start practical work.

Professor Walker came into the class with a smile. “Today is the day you’ve all been waiting for. Practical work!”

The Gryffindors all cheered, while the Slytherins murmured quietly amongst themselves. Walker waited for the class to quiet down before continuing.

“Now, I could transform the classroom into the different elements, but I have found that working in nature is the best way to learn how to control them. So, a little field trip! Everyone up, you may take your wands but no using them on anything or anyone, alright? Follow me.”

Everyone stood and followed Walker down the corridors. Kallias, assuming they were headed outside, wondered where on the grounds they were going. If they were focusing on one element at a time, they could go to the Great Lake for water, or somewhere to conjure a fire, and they could be going anywhere for air or earth.

Finally, they came to a stop in front of Hagrid’s hut. Walker rapped on the door twice, then stood back to wait for it to open. When it did, the class saw Hagrid with his crossbow resting on his shoulder, and his huge hound Fang by his side.

“‘Ello, little ones! I’m ter accompany ya into the forest for yer class!” He said brightly as he stepped out of his home and closed the door. One of the Gryffindors whimpered.

“We’re going into the Forbidden Forest? Isn’t it forbidden for a reason?”

Walker laughed. “Yes, but that’s why we’ve got Hagrid here. We won’t be going very far into the forest, just to a little clearing where we have space to work, and there aren’t many creatures in that area. Hagrid is friendly with a lot of the creatures in the Forest, but if there are dangerous creatures that make it past the wards I’ve set up, Hagrid and I will protect you. It’s perfectly safe.”

The same Gryffindor bit her lip, but nodded. She clung to her friend’s hand as they followed the two adults down the path. When the class emerged into the clearing, Kallias shuddered briefly. The last time he had been in a forest clearing was when Greyback had attacked him. Draco patted his shoulder sympathetically, and Kallias smiled in thanks.

As the feeling passed, Kallias took a moment to look around the clearing. It was a large size, big enough to fit the whole class and then some. One section had a tiny little pond that seemed to be a few feet deep. Across from the pond was a crackling fire that had been dug into the ground. On either side of the fire pit were open spaces outlined with white markings, presumably for the earth and air elements.

“Alright, we’re going to get started. Now, as we have learned the past few classes, most Elementals are gifted with the ability to control one or two elements through their bloodline. Who can tell me another way someone can gain an elemental ability? Mr. Zabini.”

“Through their Soulmate.”

Walker smiled. “Five points to Slytherin. You are exactly right, Mr. Zabini. Soulmates can share inherited Magical abilities, to a limit. So if your Soulmate’s has an Elemental inheritance of say earth, you will also have the ability to manipulate earth, to a certain extent. Your Soulmate will be more powerful and will have an easier time learning how to control their element than you will, and vice versa. Now, that’s not to say that only people with Elemental inheritances can manipulate the elements. Anyone can do it, but having an Elemental inheritance will make it scores easier to learn. Today, we will be discovering who has Elemental inheritances, either through their bloodline or through their Soulmates. We will do this by going through each element, one at a time, trying to manipulate it. I will demonstrate.”

Walker slipped off her boots and socks then rolled up the legs of her trousers, before stepping into the shallow pond. As the class watched, she raised her hands, palms down, and moved them in a circular pattern. Slowly, the water in the pond began to churn and move in the same direction as the professor’s hands. Walker dropped her hands to her side and the water came to an abrupt halt, splashing back into the pond before all ripples ceased.

“As you can see, I have an inheritance of water, but I can also manipulate earth a bit. I will be helping instruct you on how to manipulate the elements. Any volunteers to begin? Does anyone know for sure if they have an inheritance?”

A timid Gryffindor slowly raised her hand. “I have an earth inheritance, but I’ve never tried to use it before.”

Walker smiled and ushered her forwards, directing her to stand in one of the spaces outlined in white. “What’s your name?”

“Alexis Boot, ma’am.”

“Well Miss Boot, are you ready? I recommend removing your shoes and socks, it will help you get more connected with the earth. I recommend everyone doing the same when it’s your turn.”

The class watched silently as Walker helped the girl get into a proper stance then begin attempting to move a few small stones. When a stone rose shakily into the air, the other Gryffindors burst into raucous applause, causing Boot to lose focus and the stone to drop to the ground.

Walker went through the class, directing them to each elemental area to attempt manipulation. When it was Kallias’ turn, he informed her that he knew he had a fire inheritance. He didn’t mention the water inheritance, as he already knew he could manipulate the water.

“Alright, Mr. Slytherin, are you ready? I want you to close your eyes and let the warmth of the fire wash over you. Let it relax your body. Good, now raise your hand in front of you, rest it above the flames. Do you feel them?”

Kallias focused on the sensations of his hand. The skin tingled, as if someone were trailing a feather along his palm. He nodded.

“That’s good. Now wiggle your fingers, just a little.”

Kallias did as he was told, moving his fingers back and forth, just enough to make the tingling feeling disappear for a moment. Then, he felt the flames licking at his palm, and opened his eyes to watch in fascination as the fire stretched to reach his skin. It was warm, almost unbearably so, but they didn’t burn his skin.

Walker smiled and the Slytherin students applauded politely as Kallias stepped away from the fire pit and rejoined them. Draco leaned over to murmur in his ear.

“Show off.”

Kallias smirked at him. “You’re just upset that you didn’t have an inheritance.”

Draco let his blank mask slip momentarily, pouting at his cousin. “It’s not fair. You get to manipulate water and fire.”

Kallias shook his head at his cousin and turned his attention towards Ron, who was standing next to the fire pit now. He watched as the flames reacted to Ron almost immediately, a sure sign of a natural inheritance.

* * *

The owl post swooped into the Great Hall the next morning, as usual. Draco’s eagle owl, Ignis, landed in front of him carrying a haul of sweets from Narcissa. Akilah landed in front of Kallias; plate, nabbing a piece of bacon from his plate as the boy untied the letter from her leg. Mitra hissed at the raven good naturedly from his spot on Kallias’ neck. As his familiar, the teachers had no choice but to allow the snake to be toted around the castle, so long as Kallias kept him from attacking anybody.

(Dumbledore had tried to make Kallias leave Mitra in the dormitory, but Severus and Lily refused the man, saying that if other students were allowed to bring their familiars to class, Mitra should be allowed the same right.)

Kallias petted Akliah’s feathers as he untied the letter from her leg. It wasn’t sealed, so it hadn’t come from anyone at home. Narrowing his eyes, he peered at the note before slowly opening it. As his eyes scanned over the words, they widened before narrowing once more. His head shot up to look around the Great Hall suspiciously. As he was peering at the Gryffindor students, he thought he caught sight of Granger looking at him, but then Corvus nudged him.

“What’s wrong?”

Kallias shoved the note at him, green eyes still trained on Granger’s head. He heard Corvus gasp, then Draco as he read the note.

_I know what you are._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is unedited, so feel free to let me know of any grammar mistakes!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I’m back! Sorry I’ve been MIA for a while, life’s a bitch and virtual school and writer’s block were beating me up. Hopefully I can start updating more regularly :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unrelated to this chapter but also kinda related... I have made some minor edits to the series, the biggest being that Archer Snape is now named Corvus Snape. Mostly because I think when I looked up constellation/star names for him I found one that said Archer but now going back through names, I don't know If that's an official name or if it's just a nickname. And also Corvus sounds more like a name fitting of a member of the "Most Noble and Ancient House of Black" so yeah.
> 
> If you want to see the list of the other edits I made (one of which will come into play later this book), you can go to the series and see it in the description
> 
> Also, the credit for the concept of the occlumency process in this chapter goes to Des98 and alwayslily22, their series "The much better, Dursley's can fuck off, Slytherins are people too AU" is awesome and I'm a fan. If either of the authors happen upon this story and would rather I didn't use their occlumency concept, feel free to let me know and I will change it :)

Kallias and his friends were excited for their first Occlumency lesson with Severus that night. The boy had invited Daphne and Pansy to join them the same night he had gotten the mysterious note, as well as offering Vincent and Gregory an invitation as well. The latter two, who had been asked to be called Vince and Greg, seemed wary at first, but after reassurances by Kallias and Draco, agreed.

Now, they sat together at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall, including Neville, who would be joining them as well. When Kallias had directed Neville towards the green and silver table, some older Slytherins had balked at the sight of a non-Slytherin sitting with them, but nobody had dared publicly start an argument with a fellow Slytherin, let alone one younger than them, _and_ the Heir, at that. Kallias also secretly thought that they didn’t mind Neville as much, since he was a Hufflepuff, the only house that made an effort to be friendly with the snakes. If the timid boy had been sorted into Gryffindor or even Ravenclaw, the story might be wildly different.

“So we tell everyone we’re getting extra lessons? Won’t that seem suspicious for those of us that do well in Potions? No offence, Longbottom.”

Everyone had heard about poor Neville’s lack of skill in Potions class. Between clumsiness, natural skill, and nerves due to the severe professor, Neville had managed to explode his cauldron a record number of times in just the first week of school.

“For those of us who don’t have any trouble in Potions, we’ll say that Severus offered us extra lessons to teach us advanced skills. Most of us are Slytherins anyway, so they won’t question the special treatment. And Severus _is_ a good teacher, so him having Neville and Vince and Greg for extra lessons to help them won’t seem too out of character. Severus mentioned once that he holds remedial potions lessons later in the year, so we can just say they wanted extra help early on.”

Daphne nodded, eying the Head Table where Snape sat, silently eating his food. A minute later, he bid McGonagall goodbye and stood, sweeping out a side door that presumably led out of the Great Hall.

“Do you suppose we should hurry, if he’s already left?” Ron asked, looking down at his recently filled second plate of food.

Kallias chuckled. “I think between you and these two, Severus will understand if we’re not right on his heels. Although, maybe don’t get thirds.”

Ron blushed brilliantly while Vince and Greg grunted, making the others around him laugh, before he went back to eating. Soon, everyone had finished their food and were ready to leave, with most of them snagging dessert to eat while they walked to the dungeons.

Corvus and Draco led the way down to the dungeons. Kallias chose to walk with Neville, using the journey into the depths of the castle as an opportunity to catch up with his friend.

“How have your classes been, Nev? Are your housemates nice?”

Neville nodded. “Yeah, they’re all really kind, and they help me with my homework if I need it. I haven’t been doing too well in my classes though. They’re all going about as well as Potions.”

“Not Herbology though. Remind me to ask you to be my partner every time we need one.” Kallias grinned.

Neville flushed, looking down with a small smile.”Only if you help me with Charms. You’re doing really well in that class.”

Now it was Kallias’ turn to smile softly at the praise. “Deal.”

They shook hands on it just as the group arrived at Snape’s classroom. Draco knocked on the closed door, stepping back when it swung open to reveal Severus, looking down at them.

“Come in children, quickly now.”

Once everyone had shuffled into the room and the door had been closed, Severus cast multiple spells on the door. Kallias took a second to look around before Severus began talking. All of the work stations had been cleared off, and the first two rows banished to make room for the group. Severus had even added a plush carpet to the stone floor in front of his desk.

Severus turned to the group, lowering his wand. “I raised a few wards so if anyone should happen to look in, they will see a potions tutoring session taking place. What happens in this room is not known to the rest of the castle, and it must be kept that way. You musn’t tell anyone what I am really teaching you. Is that understood?”

The first years all nodded seriously, and Severus gestured towards the carpet on the floor. Kallias sat down immediately, glad he was sitting on the soft material rather than the hard floor. Neville settled himself to the left of Kallias, looking nervous. Kallias patted his knee comfortingly as Ron also settled on the carpet with ease, on the other side of Kallias. Vince and Greg sat off to the side near Severus’ desk, looking around. Corvus made himself at home leaning against the other end of his father’s desk, soon joined by Severus himself. Daphne pulled Pansy down to the floor, who sniffed but was otherwise quiet. Theo got comfortable near Neville, glancing around at the group. Draco and Blaise remained standing, looking at the carpet in disdain.

“You want us to sit on the _floor?_ ” Draco asked incredulously. Severus raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

“I seem to recall you had no qualms about sitting on the floor at Christmastime. Sit down on the carpet, Draco, or you can remain standing for the entire time we are here. You as well, Blaise.”

Blaise didn’t look happy about it, but he settled next to Ron. Draco remained standing, silently challenging Severus, which Kallias personally thought was a stupid thing to do, until he sighed in defeat and sat next to Theo, pouting. Kallias rolled his eyes at his cousin’s dramatics before focusing on Severus, who was looking decidedly amused by his godson.

“Now that we’ve all settled down,” he cast a pointed glance in Draco’s direction, “we can begin. For those of you who don’t know, Occlumency is the magic of protecting one’s mind and subsequently, thoughts from a Legilimens. A Legilimens is a person who has mastered the art of Legilimency, the branch of magic that allows one to navigate through the layers of a person’s mind. Occlumency is a delicate and difficult branch of magic to master. As such, there will be no foolishness during these lessons.”

He cast a look around the circle of children, and everyone nodded. Satisfied, Severus continued.

“Good. Now, there are many techniques for learning occlumency. The most common is meditation, as it is mostly adults that wish to learn occlumency. However, since you are all so young, and many of you are quite.....easily distracted, we will say, this is not the approach I will be teaching you.”

Corvus, who had been subjected to his father’s stare during the last bit, humphed and looked away. Draco, who had also received a side-eye from the man, crossed his arms petulantly. Kallias noted that Pansy also looked put out by Severus’ words.

“The approach I will teach you is to protect your thoughts by building a fortress around them, which should look different for each of you. It doesn't have to be an actual building or structure, just something that will protect your thoughts and distract whoever tries to enter. For example, I imagine a Quidditch lover’s fortress might be a Quidditch pitch with players or bludgers flying around protecting their thoughts.”

Pansy perked up. “What about attacking them?”

Severus narrowed his eyes at the young girl. She had been a friend of both Corvus and Draco from a very young age, and had been around the Snape household many times. As such, Severus knew she was rambunctious and a little too bloodthirsty to be normal.

“We will focus on attacks later on. For now, just worry about distracting the intruders.”

Pansy pouted for a moment, before smiling as Daphne bumped their shoulders together. Severus rolled his eyes at his young, violent snake before addressing the group again.

“I will give you all a few minutes to begin thinking of an unique environment to protect your thoughts. For this to work, it is best to be relaxed, so try to calm yourself and let any worries slip away, even just for a moment.” Then Severus fell quiet, observing each of his students as they began focusing.

Kallias closed his eyes and thought about how he could protect his mind. He hated being enclosed in small spaces, much preferring to spend his time outside no matter the weather. And when he spent time hiding from Dudley’s gang in the library, he often read about artists like Michelangelo, taking an interest in painting and sculptures. He also had an affinity for attracting the stray dogs and cats in the neighborhood while he was outside, which he always enjoyed.

Suddenly he had an image of a small island surrounded by calm waters and angry grey storm clouds. On the island stood a sculpture with no distinguishable shape, in front of what looked like a glass case surrounding a piece of parchment. Slowly, Kallias approached the sculpture. It was easy to travel over the water for the moment, but he figured the environment would be stormy to keep intruders out. As he touched the sand of the island, in front of the sculpture, it changed shape before his eyes, becoming a large tiger that bounded around Kallias. As Kallias watched, it changed shape again, this time into a long snake. Again and again the sculpture changed into different animals, and when it became a dragon and then a crow, Kallias realized they were animal versions of his family.

A tiger for his mother and a snake for his father, a hulking wolf for Remus, a coyote for Severus and a raven for Regulus, a dragon for Draco and a crow for Corvus. He laughed delightedly as the coyote pawed at his leg and looked up at him. Letting the shifting sculpture follow him, he approached the glass case.

The parchment inside was fashioned like a pirate’s treasure map, though there were multiple X’s on the map, each in a different color. He took the map and followed the path to the red X, which was closest to the center island. As he floated over the waters following the map, he imagined how difficult it would be to swim to the proper place during a storm, fighting against the waves and rain, all while not losing the map.

Of course, four of the five X-marks-the-spots were decoys, so you had to choose the correct path to follow. Kallias grinned in delight as he came upon the small island the red path led to, which held another sculpture that transformed into a crow as he came closer.

When Kallias opened his eyes, he peered at Corvus, who still had his own eyes closed, and smiled slightly. Severus raised an eyebrow at him, but Kallias merely grinned and closed his eyes again, exploring the mental ‘fortress’ his subconscious had built. After a few more minutes, Severus cleared his throat, pulling Kallias out of his mind.

“If any of you think you are ready, I will test your environment and your shields. Legilimency can be painful if the caster wishes it to be, but I will be gentle, and if I see something too personal, I will withdraw immediately. Are there any volunteers?”

Kallias straightened and jerked his head. “I’ll go.”

Severus eyed him, silently wondering what he would see when entering the mind of the young, traumatized boy. “Are you sure?”

Kallias narrowed his eyes and nodded. Severus readied his wand, pointed at Kallias’ scarred forehead. Then he cast Legilimens and probed at the shields of his godson. To the rest of the group, Kallias and Severus were unmoving statues, but within the boy’s head Severus was fighting against the water that had begun to churn, along with the heavy, pelting rain from the clouds above. Kallias trailed behind him with a small smirk twisting his mouth and his brow furrowed as he concentrated on feeling and tracking Severus’ presence within his mind.

When Severus finally reached the island, he was soaking wet and wary of the marble sculpture standing guard over a glass case. He tried edging around the sculpture, but the hunk of marble moved with him, ensuring he would have to go through it in order to get to what was surely the next obstacle of Kallias’ mind. Severus sighed, approaching the statue cautiously. He balked as the sculpture suddenly transformed into a raven, intent on flapping around Severus’ head. He ducked and batted at the marble raven, watching as it dived and transformed in midair, landing as a large wolf that advanced on Severus menacingly. As Severus backed away from the wolf, he caught sight of a gleaming golden key in the sand next to the display case, and dove for it.

Behind him he could hear Kallias laughing and grumbled under his breath about bratty children and detention for life as he scooped the key up, letting the sand flow through his fingers. All of a sudden the statue disappeared, which Severus was rather thankful for, as it had just transformed into a mean looking tiger.

Standing up and trying to brush off the sand sticking to him, to no avail, Severus examined the glass case then the key in his hand. He found a small keyhole on the stand of the case and inserted the key, turning it and watching the glass melt away.

“Giving intruders a key to the map to your memories? Not a very smart idea, Kallias.”

Behind Severus, the boy cackled gleefully as he watched the potions master pull the map from the stand and examine it. Severus sighed deeply after a moment. “You made more than one spot?”

Kallias cackled again, and Severus considered pulling out of the boy’s mind to avoid more frustration, but then remembered why they were doing this at all. Severus needed to see this through to make sure it could keep both Dumbledore and Greyback away from his godson’s mind. Rolling his shoulders back, Severus randomly chose a path to follow, the pink one, and reluctantly headed back towards the water, which hadn’t calmed at all in the few minutes Severus had been on land.

When he finally reached the island that the pink path led to, he saw another statue, already transformed into a tiger and stalking around the island. Severus groaned and pulled himself onto the island, ready for the tiger’s attack. When it lunged at him, he dived to the side, sending the statue into the water, where it disappeared once more. With that out of the way, Severus looked around the bare island. He saw nothing to indicate that there were any memories here, not even a large X, pink or any other color, marked on the sand.

“You made decoys, didn’t you?”

Kallias made a happy sound, presumably overjoyed at the thought of fooling his teacher and godfather. Severus trudged back to the water, pulling out the map to pick another path to follow. The map had changed, this time showing the paths from the island he stood on to other islands.

Luckily for him, Severus had chosen to follow the yellow path, which led to an island free of any statues. He did, however, see a Muggle shovel sticking out of the sand. He strode towards the shovel, overcome with a newfound burst of energy at seemingly having found the correct island, and began to dig into the spot marked by the golden X.

It felt like he dug for hours before he finally hit something. Quickly, he pulled out a treasure chest and opened it. Inside was a variety of treasure, including coins, rings, pendants, even a few crowns. Curious, the potions master picked up a gold coin and examined it.

It was a memory, and as he held it up he was sucked into it. Kallias was no older than 3, already doing the cooking and cleaning for the Dursley’s. Severus sucked in a breath as the bacon burned on the stove and Petunia picked up the still hot pan, using it to whack the small child over the head.

The man wrenched himself out of Kallias’ head and stared at the boy in horror as he dropped his wand. His eyes searched the left side of Kallias’ face, looking for-yes, there it was. Half buried under his silky black hair was a burn scar that extended almost to his cheekbone and covered the tip of his ear. It was faint, likely healed somewhat by the Pool of Rebirth in Gringotts, but it was obvious against his skin if you looked hard enough.

The rest of the group was looking at Severus with varying expressions of worry, so he cleared his throat roughly and nodded at the boy.

“Well done, Kallias. Lots of distractions and deceptions. As you get stronger, it will be even harder for people to actually get to your memories.”

Kallias smiled tightly, but Severus could see the muted look in the boy’s eyes. He turned to the rest of the group.

“Is anyone else ready to try?”


End file.
